Drew Carey opens up about depression and his 2 suicide attempts: They were ‘calls for help’

Drew Carey isn’t afraid to be candid about his struggles with mental health.

The Price is Right host went deep during his Friday appearance on Max’s Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace, reflecting on the years-long battle with depression, which led him to attempt suicide when he was 18, and again in his early 20s.

"I think the suicide attempts were calls for help,” Carey said, explaining that the first occurred during a fraternity party, of which he recalls, “I was so mad that everybody was having a good time. I remember that. I remember walking down the stairs and everybody’s drinking and I was like, ‘What the hell are they so happy about?”

He continued, “I was just angry that they were so happy. I was just tired of my life and [thought], who's gonna miss me?”

Carey also admits that those struggles haven’t entirely dissipated, adding that he occasionally still feels that way: “I have a lot of that still. Like, the who's-gonna-miss-me type of thing. A lot of times I think to myself. Like, if I die, I'm just gonna have my body cremated. No funeral and anything associated with, like, all my mementos and stuff. You can just burn them and give them away. Like, who cares?"

The comedian went on to emphasize that his mental health is now in a much better place. Time spent in boot camp for the Marines gave him “three meals a day” and “purpose" as opposed to being "broke, lost, and sleeping on my brother's couch." Later he found solace in self-help books and grew out of past insecurities while performing stand-up comedy.

“I still get depressed, often, just like everyone else,” Carey told Wallace. “But it’s not as bad. I mean, just because you’re a celebrity and you have money doesn’t mean bad things don’t happen to you or you don’t have bad days. Everybody’s a person.”

To illustrate that final point, he told a joke he often repeats while hosting The Price is Right. “I’m a regular guy from Cleveland,” he began.  “My girlfriend ties me to the bed one leg at a time, just like everyone else.”

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.

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